A Fool’s Paradise
Strange as it may seem, I like to think of myself as a fool. Whenever I remember my essential foolish nature I immediately relax, usually with a smile on my face. Knowing I’m a fool, I no longer have to live up to some image of an efficient, successful, mindful, wise, compassionate being. I can just be me, someone a little weak of will, just now caught up in the mundane dramas of my life and times; someone who often believes in the illusion of a self that, even if it were real, is certainly not ideal. Knowing I’m a fool, I can also take comfort in the observation of the Taoist rascal Chuang Tzu, who says, “Those who know they are fools are not the biggest fools.”